New property owners may be required to join a homeowners’ association after purchasing a home. The goal of an HOA is, broadly, for homeowners to create a community together and to offer some level of regulation and conformity. For example, an HOA may have standards...
Homeowners’ Associations
Can your HOA mandate anything within your home?
If you live in a Homeowners Association (HOA), then you have agreed to let them set certain rules and restrictions. There could be public areas, such as pools or recreational areas, where the HOA sets up rules and regulations that you have to follow. They may also...
HOA pet disputes: A primer
Homeowners’ associations (HOAs) can provide many benefits. Homeowners that choose to move into a planned neighborhood or condominium complex that is part of an HOA often enjoy various community benefits, including groomed landscaping, access to golf courses, pools,...
Can an HOA community protect against short-term rentals?
A homeowners association (HOA) must establish a delicate balance between maintaining community standards and maintaining a sense of community. Consistent and reasonable enforcement of the rules is necessary, as is the frequent updating and modernization of existing...
How selective enforcement disempowers an HOA
A homeowner's association (HOA) helps protect the culture of a neighborhood and also local property values. The HOA can create and enforce rules about lawn and property maintenance, as well as many other choices homeowners make that affect their communities. For...
Can your HOA impose a ban on residents owning pets?
If you serve on the board of your local homeowner's association (HOA), your primary objective is likely to preserve property values and minimize how much it costs to maintain community amenities. Minimizing elements that will make the community unattractive or...
Can an HOA make rules about holiday decorations?
People often join a homeowners’ association (HOA) because they want to enjoy the amenities that come along with living in that community. They may also enjoy the relatively uniform design of the community that makes things feel comfortable and inviting. In order to...
When a member doesn’t pay fees, how can the HOA board resolve it?
When someone doesn't pay HOA fees, it creates quite a problem for the board. These fees are mandatory because they help to cover the amenities that you get when you're living at the HOA. As long as everyone pays their fees on time, the community can operate properly....
Are you thinking about starting an HOA?
There are many myths about homeowners' associations (HOAs). Some people think that HOAs are a waste of time and money, while others believe they are the only way to keep a neighborhood in order. HOAs have plenty of benefits, along with some drawbacks. This article...
Successful defense of a unit owner’s challenge to service of process
In an action to foreclosure on a lien for unpaid common charges brought by our HOA client, we successfully defended a unit owner’s challenge to service of process. Thereafter, the Court issued a money judgment and judgment of foreclosure and sale. Three days before...